The streets of 1893 New York are crowded and filthy. For thirteen-year-old newsboy Maks Geless, they are also dangerous. Bruno, leader of the awful Plug Ugly Gang, has set his sights on Maks and orders his boys to track him down. Suddenly Maks finds himself on the run, doing all he can to evade the gang, with only his new friend Willa by his side. And that’s just the start of Mak’s troubles. His sister, Emma, has been arrested and imprisoned for stealing a watch from the glamorous new Waldorf Hotel. Maks knows she didn’t do it—but will he be able to prove it in time?This is a riveting, quickly paced adventure set against a backdrop alive with the sights and sounds of tenement New York.

Lynne Ewing is the best-selling author of the Daughters of the Moon series, and the popular companion series Sons of the Dark and Sisters of Isis. Ms. Ewing lives in Los Angeles, California, and Washington, DC.

Unrated Critic Reviews for City of Orphans

Kirkus Reviews

The two kids team up and eventually learn the truth: the evil Mr. Underton was blinded by Sarah's mother 11 years ago when he tried to steal the token that's the source of power for the metropolis (N.Y.C.), which will freeze if the token isn't delivered to safekeeping each December 21 by Sarah's ...

Kirkus Reviews

Avi’s vivid recreation of the sights and sounds of that time and place is spot on, masterfully weaving accurate historical details with Maks’ experiences as he encounters the city of sunshine and shadow.

Publishers Weekly

After outlining an altered version of New York City's history, the elaborately plotted saga shows how, through courage and cunning, two preteens, Carlos and Estella, and Estella's clairvoyant mother thwart a power-hungry villain and thereby prevent Manhattan from turning to ice.

Examiner

Young protagonist Maks chats up readers like a tour guide, as he leads sidekick Willa along grisly side streets, up the steps of Tombs prison where his sister is wrongfully imprisoned and down a dank, dark hole leading to the dangerous Plug Ugly Gang hide away.